


'tis the damn season

by marvelousmsmol



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Christmas Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Identity Reveal, Marichat | Adrien Agreste as Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Secret Santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:01:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28282095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marvelousmsmol/pseuds/marvelousmsmol
Summary: When Chat insists that Multimouse participates in the first-ever Miraculous squad Secret Santa, but Marinette has a hard time coming up with the perfect gift for him.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 20
Kudos: 212
Collections: Miraculous Writer's Guild December Event





	'tis the damn season

**Author's Note:**

> This was for the Miraculous Writer's Guild December Event. My prompt was Marichat- Secret Santa!

It had been a long time since Marinette had last sat on her balcony. It felt almost too cold to do so now, but there was a warmth of nostalgia that lessened the chill in her bones. She had come out here to get a moment of peace from the frantic Christmas baking that was going on in the kitchen downstairs. Family activities were a little hectic, thanks to her parents and her father’s parents disagreeing about how long the cookies or bread was supposed to go in the oven. 

Being in between apartments and in between semesters at school, moving back into her old bedroom was the best option for her survival at the moment, but she wasn’t so sure about her sanity. So, in order to have both things, she thought taking a break up here alone was for the best. Marinette didn’t exactly have the energy to deal with any festivities after wasting it all on patrol earlier. 

She had thought being Ladybug while trying to make it through university classes was hard- Working herself to death while she spent most of her time alone, not having seen any of her friends in months, was much worse.

So, here she was, standing outside in the dark with a cup of hot cocoa and maybe a little schnapps secretly slipped in. Marinette pulled the blanket she had draped over her shoulders tighter around her. She could see her breath in front of her, a sign that she should probably head back inside to the warmth of a heated room. 

Just as she was about to turn back to the trapdoor, there was a thump from above. The noise made her whip around on instinct, ready to scream or punch or fight to the death with whatever was there. But, the crouched silhouette was immediately familiar, and the glowing green eyes against the dark was a dead giveaway.

“Chat Noir?” Marinette asked, stepping closer to him as he jumped down from her chimney. “What are you doing here?”

“What are you doing here?” He countered. “Aly- Rena- Uh-,” Chat cleared his throat as Marinette raised an eyebrow. “Sources told me that you were living in an apartment with friends.” 

“Lease was up,” Marinette said with a shrug. “I figured I’d spend Christmas here.” 

Chat stepped closer to the middle of the balcony, almost meeting Marinette dead center. He seemed awkward and unsure, swaying back and forth from his heels to his toes. His hands were clasped behind his back and he was leaning forward at a slight angle. 

“It’s… been awhile since I’ve been up here,” Chat said. He met her eyes for a moment before walking past her and making his way over to the metal railing at the edge. “I’ve kind of missed the view.” 

Marinette had turned to face him again but hadn’t walked over. The sight was extremely familiar despite changes in his height, and build, and the fact that a little of the blond color had faded out of his hair, turning it just a shade darker. 

She slowly made her way to him, matching his stance and leaning against the railing. “So…” she said, waiting for him to turn his head and meet her eyes. “Why were you looking for me?”

Chat jumped up, now standing as straight as a board, as though he had forgotten exactly what his purpose coming here had been and was only now just remembering. 

“Right,” He said, reaching to his belt. Marinette just now noticed the small drawstring pouch attached to his hip. “Secret Santa. It’s your turn to pick a name.”  
Chat held the bag out in front of him, waiting for her to reach inside, but Marinette was frozen in place. Chat had been planning and pestering her for weeks about this game. Every time they had gone on patrol since November first he had brought it up. Ladybug had finally given in yesterday. But why was he here asking her to pick a name, unless-

“ME?” Marinette asked, trying her hardest not to sound too shocked and failing. “Why me? What?”

“Well, think of it as a team-building exercise,” Chat said. “Ladybug finally agreed that the heroes could exchange gifts as long as it didn’t do too much to reveal any of our identities.” 

Marinette let out a sigh in relief as she heard him mention Ladybug in a way that had nothing to do with her, but it still didn’t do much to answer her question. 

“Why do I get to pick a name?” Marinette asked.

“Come on, Multimouse does a great job helping us out occasionally,” Chat said. “Ladybug always comes to you to fill in when she’s got some secret problem.”

“Oh.” 

Marinette did still occasionally transform into Mutlimouse to fill in for Ladybug during patrols. Usually, she split between scouring the city while the rest of her clones were back in her room studying for a project when she didn’t have time to do both. She’d pulled that little trick again just two weeks ago. 

“I thought it was only fair that you got rewarded for your help,” Chat said, gesturing to the bag again. “Go on, pick a name.” 

Marinette bit her bottom lip and reluctantly stuck her hand into the black velvet bag. She fished around, mixing up all the different stips of paper before finally snatching one up in her fingers and drawing it out. Chat was smiling as she unfolded it, bringing the piece of paper close to her face to hide what it said from him. 

_ Chat Noir _

Trying her best to suppress a smile, Marinette folded it back up and stuck it in the pocket of her cardigan. 

“Soooo, come on, give me a hint of who you got,” Chat said, leaning forward and resting his head on his chin.

Marinette stuck her chin up in the air, shaking her head. “Absolutely not. That would be cheating.”

“Awww,” Chat said, putting on a mock pout and sticking out his bottom lip. “I can’t wait to see what you come up with though.”

“Trust me,” Marinette said. “It’s going to be spectacular.”

\-----------------------

“Tikki I have no idea what I’m going to get him,” Marinette said, her head between her knees, her fingers wrapped around her hair practically trying to tear it out. 

“Marinette, calm down,” Tikki said, flying over and patting the top of Marinette’s head. “It’ll be fine. I’m sure Chat will love whatever you give him. Why don’t you focus on your other gift for now? Don’t you have to give someone something as Ladybug, too?”  
“I’ve already finished that one,” Marinette said, waving her hand in the direction of the wrapped present on her desk. “I went to a joke store and got Kim one of those prank toy boxes.”

“See, you're great at picking out presents for people.” Tikki floated down in front of her face, patting her nose. “Look, you know that whatever you give him he’s going to love, right? It doesn’t matter if the gift is perfect, only that you mean it.” 

Marinette groaned, leaning her head against the leg of her desk with a  _ thump. _ “I guess you’re right.”

She closed her eyes, stilled and listened to the sound of the rain outside. It was calm and peaceful, and Marinette tried to focus her mind on thinking of the perfect thing to give to Chat for Christmas. He was funny, and- though he didn’t always show it- extremely clever, kind, and handsome-

_ THUMP. _

Marinette’s eyes shot open as she heard a sound from the roof above and suddenly there was a knocking on her trap door.  _ Who the hell is out there in the rain? _

She climbed up the ladder of her loft bed and pushed open her trap door as carefully as she could to avoid any of the rain falling in. A little light peeked out of her room, illuminating only a tiny sliver of outside. The light caught on the rain and shined off the soaking wet mop of hair atop Chat’s head as he shivered in the cold.

“Can I come in?” He asked, his teeth chattering. 

Without another word, Marinette opened the trap door, even more, allowing him to slip inside. He dripped everywhere, and she knew she would have to pull the blankets off her bed. Marinette skipped a few of the steps of the ladder on the way down, pulling Chat along with her. She sat him down on the chaise lounge and pulled the heater over to him, turning it on to its highest setting. He stayed there, watching her as she raced around her bedroom trying to make him comfortable. Marinette grabbed a towel from the bathroom and tossed it to him, and he immediately started drying off his hair and cat ears that sat atop his head. 

“What were you thinking running around outside in the rain like that?” Marinette scolded, wrapping a blanket around her shoulders as she took in the rest of him with critical eyes. She muttered to herself, “We can’t take that costume off you. I don’t think you have anything on underneath, but you might freeze if we don't…”

“You want me to strip, princess?” Chat asked, and Marinette’s eyes shot up to his. The smirk on his face was impossible to miss, and after the shock wore off, Marinette’s face flushed in embarrassment. She backed away from him, still in her crouched position, and sat down on the floor with a good five feet between them. He held up his hands. “I’m not averse to it.”

“If you flirt with me like that, kitty cat, I’m going to kick you out again,” She said with a straight face. They both knew she was joking. 

Chat’s eyes flitted to her desk, catching sight of the perfectly wrapped present sitting there. He stood and walked over to it with the blanket still hanging off his shoulders like a cape. “For  _ moi?”  _

Marinette rushed over and smacked his hands away before he could grab it with his claws that were sure to tear the wrapping paper. “That’s not for you.” 

“Aww,” Chat said, pouting. “But, I want a gift from Marinette.” 

She placed her hands on his chest, pushing him back to her chaise and forcing him to sit down. “Just dry off, you stupid cat.”

Marinette fell back down to the floor, this time laying down on her back and staring up at the ceiling. It was back to the silence of the rain for a minute until Chat spoke up again. His voice sounded almost distant and hoarse.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been in here with you.”

“It was a while since you hung out with me on the balcony, too,” Marinette said. She could hear him shifting on the chaise. Marinette’s eyes traced invisible lines on the ceiling as she waited for him to respond, but he didn’t. “Why do you never come to visit me anymore? I only ever see you when- When Ladybug lets me patrol.”

“Being an _ “adult,’” _ Chat said with a mocking tone, “it doesn’t leave me much time for the things I would like to do.” 

Marinette couldn’t think of what to say next. Her mind couldn’t stop playing back his last few words. _ Things I would like to do.  _ How often did he think about visiting her? Did Chat even know where she lived normally? Or was it simply a wish to regress to their teenage selves, spending their time together till late in the night? 

Spending time with him was something she would like to do, too.

Marinette wasn’t watching him, but she heard Chat flop down next to her on the floor. He rested his head on his hands, looking up at the ceiling as she was, his elbow so close to her temple that the leather fabric covering his arms took up most of her peripheral vision. 

“The holidays are weird,” Marinette said, not looking at him. Chat’s head rolled to the side, but she kept her eyes forward. “They don’t feel real anymore.”  
“This time of year has never felt real to me,” Chat said. He looked away, and now it was Marinette’s turn to stare without it being returned. “My parents were always busy going to parties, and I was always left home alone, and then my mom… Christmas was very different, I’ll say that.”

Marinette frowned and rolled onto her side. He noticed her shifting and moved to match the new position. She studied his face without saying anything, taking note of the sadness he was trying to hide at the moment. The corners of his lips were turned up into a smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes. Chat clearly knew that Marinette had noticed that much. He grabbed the blanket that was still partially draped over him and tossed it, hitting her in the face and cutting him off from her view. “Here, you should stay warm, too.”

Fumbling to get out from under it, Marinette groaned in frustration. She could hear him laughing, and was surprised by a now genuine smile on his face when she finally got the blanket off of her. Marinette kept the fabric tucked up underneath her chin as she watched him. Chat opened his eyes again, noticing her gaze that was locked on him, and stilled suddenly.

“What are you doing?” he asked, and the smile fell from his face, replaced with the same wistful expression that was on her own.

“Reminiscing,” Marinette said. She sat up suddenly, startling him a little. Grabbing onto his wrist, Marinette dragged Chat up to his feet and started pushing him towards the bathroom. “Go detransform into your dry clothes. I’m going to put on a movie for us.”

“Hey, hey,” Chat said, taking hold of Marinette’s wrists and planting his feet into the ground. “You know I can’t stay here if you’re going to see my face.”

Marinette quirked an eyebrow, wrenching her hands out of his grasp. She walked over to her desk and opened up one of the drawers. Reaching far back, Marinette fumbled around for something in particular, pushing past old pens and probably pricking her finger on a sewing needle while she was at it. She knew she found what she was looking for in the farthest back corner and pull it out triumphantly. Marinette tossed it over to Chat who caught it without even flinching.

“You know the drill,” Marinette said, nodding. Chat unfurled the fabric in his hand, instantly recognizing the black mask Marinette had made him so long ago, along with the black hoodie he would wear in case any of his clothes were recognizable. A faint hint of a smile appeared on his face and Chat stepped into the bathroom of his own accord. 

As the door shut behind him, Tikki came out of her hiding place, flying right up to Marinette. “You’ve got a funny look on your face.”

“Do I?” Marinette asked, rubbing her cheeks till they were a light pink color. She frowned. “Is it that obvious?”

“Well, it looks like you’re planning something,” Tikki said, raising one of her eyebrows and folding her arms. 

A mischievous smirk spread across Marinette’s face. “I might be,” Marinette said. “I might have just gotten the perfect idea for Chat’s Christmas present. Movie night is just step one.”

“I’d be careful, Marinette,” Tikki said. “I’ve got a feeling this present is going to give you much more than you bargained for.”

Marinette turned and looked at the closed bathroom door. “I hope so.”

\----------------------

Ladybug ran as fast as she could to get to the rooftop where they were all supposed to meet up. Chat had made arrangements to use a restaurant’s closed outdoor dining area as their meet up spot so they could have heaters and chairs for the gift exchange and had kindly delivered everyone’s miraculous to them earlier in the day, even to her. The mouse miraculous was still sitting in her room, and Mullo had been content to just take a nap in Tikki’s bed and eat a few cookies. 

Because Multimouse wouldn’t be able to make it to this party. Ladybug had to be there. 

Ladybug had already come up with a plan and excuse as to why she wouldn’t show up, but worried about the disappointed looks on the other’s faces when they realized she wouldn’t be there. It had to be this way, though. Marinette had already made a contingency plan, and Chat’s gift was held safely under her arm along with Kim’s.

“Sorry I’m late,” Ladybug said as she touched down. The others greeted her warmly. Rena ran up and hugged her, leading her over to one of the chairs. Hot chocolate and decorated cookies sat on the table in front of them. The Miraculous holders were sat in a circle, each with their present in front of them, but one chair remained empty.

Chat was sitting on his hands across from her, and Ladybug bit her lip nervously. 

“Should we get started?” Rena asked, looking to the others for approval. 

Everyone nodded and murmured in agreement, but Chat’s head shot up. “No! We have to wait for Mari- I mean… Multimouse. She hasn’t shown up yet.”

The group fell silent, and Ladybug cleared her throat. “Uh… She met up with me earlier to tell me she couldn’t make it, so she gave me her gift to hand out.”

Ladybug held up the pink envelope she had been carrying and set it down gently on the table. The name written on the front could be seen as clear as day. Chat shifted in his seat, eyes locked on his own name written out before him. He shook his head, reaching his hand back behind his head and scratched at his neck with his claws. 

“Okay,” he said, his voice quiet. Chat quickly forced a smile on his face and continued. “Let’s start, then.”

The group passed around the gifts, revealing who each other’s Secret Santas were. Some of them were funny, some very sweet. Somehow, Rena Rouge and Carapace had managed to get each other. Soon, it was down to just two of them. Chat’s unopened envelope was still sitting in front of Ladybug, and Queen Bee was still holding onto the gift that was supposed to be for Multimouse. 

“Well,” Ladybug said, as she passed the envelope across the table. “Merry Christmas, Chat.”

With a shaking hand, Chat took the letter from her and opened it using one of his claws. The others were avoiding looking at him, as he read the contents of the letter, eyes slowly moving across the page, but Ladybug still looked at him, gauging his reaction to every word. She could see his rate of breath pick up, chest rising and falling much faster than before. Soon after, he folded the paper again, creasing it carefully and sticking it back inside the envelope before putting the whole thing in one of his pockets. 

They all sat in silence until Queen Bee, thankfully, sliced through the tension and started to hand the last unopened gift to Ladybug. “Do you think you can get this to her?”

“I’ll do it,” Chat said, his hand reaching out suddenly and snatching the present from her. He stood up from his chair and pulled his baton from his back. “It seems like I have to go find her anyway.”

He was off like a bullet from a gun before Ladybug could even blink, even process the fact that he was gone. And, the panic set in. He was off to go find Marinette- To find her, and she was still standing here like an idiot.

“I- I have to go,” Ladybug stuttered and flung out her yo-yo. 

She had to make it there before Chat did.

Racing across the rooftops, Ladybug wasn’t sure she was going to make it in time. The candlelight came into view and she landed as gracefully as possible. 

Ladybug let out a deep sigh of relief. Chat wasn’t here yet. Thankfully, the sheets she had strung up to make a tent out of the candlelit rooftop provided her enough cover to detransform.

“Tikki, spots off,” Marinette said and rushed to make any last-minute preparations. She laid out the blankets, started up the projector. She had just finished putting the last marshmallow in the mugs of hot cocoa when she heard Chat touch down behind her. Marinette stood up quickly to her feet and spun around to look at him. “Merry Christmas, kitty.”

Chat’s mouth hung open and the present he was holding dropped from his hands. Marinette waited for him to come back to life, standing with her hands folded in front of her. It was getting too long, and he was still just standing there looking at her. She fiddled with the hem of her Christmas sweater and the fake poinsettia she was wearing in her hair. 

“What is there something on my face?” Marinette said, reaching up to touch her cheeks. Chat finally unfroze and crossed to her, taking hold of her wrists in her hands and pulling them away from her face. 

“No,” he said, shaking his head slowly. “You’re perfect, Princess.”

Marinette smiled and snatched one of his hands, dragging him over to the blanket and sitting him down. She grabbed the mug of cocoa and handed it to him before sitting down next to him and looking at him expectantly. 

“I’m assuming you got my letter,” Marinette said. “Well, you would have had to have gotten it otherwise you wouldn’t be here.”

“You told me to meet you-”

“Meet me at the rooftop you took me to once before,” Marinette finished for him. “You took me here even though it was originally supposed to be a date for you and Ladybug. It made me so happy.” 

Chat was sitting silently with the mug in his hands. Marinette cleared her throat and reached up to wipe her eyes. It had taken her a moment to realize that they were wet. “I had no idea what to get you for Christmas. I knew it had to be perfect because you deserve to have a really nice gift, and I was so worried that whatever I got you wouldn’t’ be good enough-”

“Marinette,” Chat said, cutting her off. “You don’t need to worry about it. This is… This is amazing.”

Marinette beamed. “Really?” She asked, and Chat nodded yes. “I wanted to give you a perfect Christmas. This is,” She said, gesturing to the elaborate set up around them. “This is what I could come with.”  
“It’s perfect- Wait,” Chat said, and brought the mug to his lips, taking a sip of her homemade hot cocoa. “Yeah, okay, it’s perfect.”

Chat set the mug down next to him and got to his feet. “Before we settle in for the night and watch movies until the crack of dawn,” he said, walking back over to where he had landed and picked up the present he'd dropped, “I should probably give this to you.”

Marinette reached out to take the gift from his hands, but he pulled it back, tucking it underneath his arms.

“Wait,” he said and reached back behind him, pulling something from his belt. “I should wear this if I’m going to be Santa.”

Marinette watched as he put a red Santa Claus hat on his head, and her eyes widened when she recognized it. She had made that. That was- That hadn’t been a gift for Chat- That was-

Chat sat back on his knees and held the present out to her with a smile on her face. Marinette didn’t even take it, reaching past and snatching the hat right off his head. She had to check. There was a surefire way to know the truth. Folding back the rim of the hat, she looked and saw it there, embroidered in a gold thread. Her signature. 

“Where did you get this?” Marinette asked, looking back up at him. “This is- I- I made this.”

Chat paled instantly. “You did?” He said, scratching the back of his neck while he fumbled for an excuse. “I didn’t know that. Wow, that’s- That’s amazing. What a strange coincidence-”

“Chat,” Marinette said in a stern tone, stopping his rambling instantly. “...Adrien?”  
He let out a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment, knowing that the secret was out. “Hi, Marinette.”

Marinette threw the hat down on the floor, pushed the present out of his hands, and tackled him to the ground. She threw her arms around him in a tight hug. Her face was hidden, but she still managed to get the words out with shaky breaths. “It’s you,” she breathed, nuzzling into his neck.  _ “It’s you it’s you it’s you it’s you-” _

“Plagg, claws in,” Chat said. Marinette pulled back to look at him, seeing Adrien’s face before her now. “It’s been a long time since you’ve seen me.”

“Clearly not as long as I thought,” Marinette responded. She let out a deep breath.  _ “Oh, Chaton.” _

Adrien leaned away. He furrowed his brows, looking at her face intently. The way he did, as though there was something not quite right with it, made Marinette want to sink in on herself or just dissolve entirely. For a moment, she felt as though she had messed up using that nickname, or maybe it hadn’t been enough to give her away. She was quite certain Adrien could be pretty dense when it came down to things; for example, all the times she had tried to tell him she loved him before. But, he grabbed her shoulders, holding her there with no way to escape. 

“My lady,” Adrien whispered in awe. 

Marinette’s fingers were wrapped around his shirt collar before he could say another word and pulled him into a kiss. Adrien deepened it, tangling his hands in her hair. Marinette wasn’t sure how else to voice her surprise, her happiness, than to kiss him. 

“Spend Christmas with me, Chaton,” Marinette said as she pulled back. “Spend every Christmas with me from now on.”

Adrien smiled. “Always, my lady.” 


End file.
